


my guardian dear

by Hnybnny



Category: Fate/Grand Order
Genre: Biblical Scripture References (Abrahamic Religions), Blood and Injury, Characters & Tags will be added as they appear, Christianity, Gen, Major Character Injury
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-02
Updated: 2019-09-11
Packaged: 2020-07-29 14:16:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,556
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20083582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hnybnny/pseuds/Hnybnny
Summary: the last master of chaldea is young and terrified, the fate of the world and perhaps the universe on their shoulders- they just wanted a summer job to help pay for college! with the stakes so high, even with the help of all their servants, they start to realize they have never felt more alone.until the supplier of solomon's power, the guider of the saints, and current big guy in the sky sends what they presume is a little divine help their way- albeit in the form of a very uncooperative and old-fashioned archangel.





	1. prelude

The Last Master of Chaldea had never been especially religious. 

Sure, they had gone to church, but only for Easter and Christmas services and the odd Sunday when one of their immediate family members were feeling a little more pious and chose to drag them along. They had gone through their church’s Confirmation class and ceremony as a young teen, but that was because their family pushed them to- frankly, they remembered little of it. Perhaps they did tend to mark their religion down as ‘Protestant’- or some other variation of Christianity being that they truly did not know nor care to know the nuances and differences between all the sects- but in the end they simply toed the line between belief and disbelief, not giving much thought to their ‘eternal soul’ and where it might end up one day when they were six feet under. Maybe they believed in a life after death; maybe they believed in an afterlife, in heaven. They weren’t quite sure. 

Orleans threw a box of wrenches into that cement mindset with their meeting of not one, not two, but  _ three  _ saints that would soon join them at Chaldea. Martha wasn’t exactly pleased with any of their answered shoulder shrugs when she inquired about their faith, but they had become quite adept at dodging the questions much like attacks in the training simulator. Jeanne and Georgios, thankfully, were relatively more reserved about such topics. 

A few Singularities later, they eventually came to the half-assed conclusion that  _ maybe  _ there was a God-capital-G, and that it was just as equally probable that there were  _ all  _ the gods at one point or another, and it had just become another one’s turn in the spotlight. Of course, the logical side of their mind heavily leaned towards the idea that it didn’t matter if a god was standing before them as a Servant, because all Servants were linked to stories and myth- things that weren't real- and that was the way it stayed until their venture into Babylonia. That gave them a lot more to think about than they’d like to admit, and perhaps luckily for them they did not exactly have much time to think about such things, with the Temple of Time so soon on their doorstep.

  
Or, at least, that is perhaps the way it  _ would  _ have been, with the Master waving away any such thoughts about existence and religion with a wave of their hand and trying not too hard to think about such things, had they not had their one fateful encounter with a certain celestial being. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i promise that the rest of the fic won't be as plainly (& perhaps uncomfortably) religious/Christian, but this first little bit is just to set things up & serve as a prelude. also, as a forewarning, this will be an original master of chaldea- to specify, they're american. you'll get more info on them later :)


	2. fall from grace

They were scared. 

They were in pain, bleeding heavily. It was pitch-black. And they were all alone. 

They were dying. 

_ Alone _ .  
  


Something had gone wrong- no,  _ everything  _ had gone wrong. 

It was supposed to be a normal mission, a run-of-the-mill expedition to Mt. Etna to scrounge up materials for da Vinci. The whole of Chaldea was preparing for the next Singularity, as Roman had announced the day prior that he had almost finished the process of locating and stabilizing it.

Emphasis on  _ supposed _ .

Joined by Mash and a handful of their servants, the trouble had started when communications to Chaldea were suddenly cut off. They had barely attempted to diagnose the problem before they found themselves beset upon by a large ambush, strange creatures that had seemingly clambered out of the volcano’s own mouth- the mountain shuddered warningly with each step. It took the team entirely by surprise with no chance to ready themselves for combat. The beings, golem-like in appearance, had proved to be much more powerful than the Master expected. They shrugged off every attack like it was nothing; each slash from Artoria’s sword or strike from Cu’s lance was brushed away as if the onslaught was from a mosquito. Oppositely, each blow from the beasts was like a sledgehammer, unrelenting and deadly. The Master, much to their chagrin, quickly was forced to use up all three of their command seals to keep their Servants upright. 

The ground continued to shift beneath their feet, footing already precarious due to their positioning on the face of an active volcano. There was a deafening explosion, and lava spewed alongside ash and rock thousands of feet into the air as the Master, transfixed on the battle, suddenly found that the very earth itself was opening up beneath them. 

They had no time to scream, or cry out, or reach out a hand for rescue. Their heart seemed to stop within their chest as time slowed to a crawl and they stared at the backs of their Servants.

Then they fell.

They fell for what seemed like an eternity, the crack of light above them shrinking to a sliver. In the blackness they felt themselves hit and bounce off of something painfully, felt bones groan and break in protest, before their descent continued- this happening once, twice more. They landed hard on what seemed like a ledge, slick with water, angled downwards. They scrambled for purchase, for a handhold, for anything, even as their fingers cut and bled on jagged stones and their battered body screamed with pain. Their weakened grip lasted a few slow moments, before they felt themselves sliding, losing sight of the only light far, far above them. They were moving fast, their voice already hoarse from vainly screaming even as they continued, and the small outcroppings that scratched and slashed at their skin could not slow them. Something leathery hit them in the face with an indignant screech before it was shoved away with a flutter, and moments after the stone abruptly disappeared beneath the Master. They found themselves seemingly flying, the hot air against their face, and they could not help but smile- before they found themselves falling once again into an impregnable, silent darkness. 

They hit the ground with a sickening thud. 

This time, they lay still.

They did not know how much time had passed when they finally awoke again. They were unsure if their eyes were even open, for the inky black was still as suffocating either way. Their body was beaten and battered, but they were alive- saved surely by the passive effects of their Shielder Servant. However, they did not know for how much longer they would stay that way. 

Their entire being was pain- a screaming, blinding pain. They could only hear the palpitations of their own heart beating wildly, tasted only metallic tang as blood filled their mouth. They found they could not move- or perhaps they could, but the pain was too much to bear. Breathing was almost impossible, but they forced themselves to slow down, to focus on each draw in and out, in and out, in and out…

They realized, with a pang in their heart uncaused by their severe injuries, that  _ they were dying _ . 

It was terrifying, knowing nothing in that moment but  _ pain  _ and  _ fear _ . They were alone, they were dying, and they were scared. It was a terror unlike any they had ever known, and they felt their heart start beating faster- probably a bad thing, they thought, as the viscous puddle they laid in seemed to grow larger. 

They had to calm down, control their breathing. They weren’t dead yet.

They then remembered a song- a hymn, technically, that they had heard Jeanne singing softly to herself one lonely evening in Chaldea. She had, after noticing them lingering close and listening enthralled, explained how it was a comfort to not only her but to people around the world, for song had that power to bring peace and harmony much like a mother’s lullaby. 

Quiet as a whisper, their broken voice struggled and started up tunelessly.

“ _ Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me….” _

They paused, taking a shuddering breath as they tried to push away the pain. Angels gave us our voices, said Jeanne, and it is them who listen closest when those voices are raised in song. 

_ “I once was lost, but now am found…” _

Hot, bitter tears were rolling down their cheeks, their face burning as the drops found scratches and open abrasions. The words cracked in their tight throat as they fought to remember them even as their mind grew cloudier. 

_ “Was blind, but now I see...” _

Placing a gentle hand upon her Master’s shoulder at the time, Jeanne had then smiled softly and told them that there was someone always watching over them, and no matter how dark the hour may be or how all hope may seem lost, all they had to do was call. 

They choked out a sob as they found themselves unable to remember anymore. They had tried to call, Jeanne, they really did. But nobody answered. Not their servants, not Da Vinci or Romani, not Mash, and certainly not a god. Perhaps it was too deep down for even the angels to hear. 

Even still, they felt a strange sense of peace begin to wash over them. At least Jeanne had been right about one thing, with the hymn.

The Last Master of Chaldea then closed their eyes, and waited for the end. 


	3. end of the tunnel

They really thought they should be dead by now.

They were pretty sure they weren’t dead- but then again, they had no idea what being dead felt like. Something… something was off. Not wrong, persay- as they didn’t think it could get more ‘wrong’ than presently knocking on Death’s door harder than an over-enthusiastic Mormon in the suburbs- but something wasn’t  _ right _ .

As they weakly opened their eyes, their vision was filled by a white and impossibly bright light. Someone needed to tell whoever was manning the controls for the end-of-the-line tunnel to tone it down a bit, apparently. But there wasn’t a tunnel. It was just light. Like, the blackness when you close your eyes- encompassing and full- but instead of dark it was bright, shining light. It was hard to look at- yet it did not hurt. It was simply… overwhelming.

Odder than that, however, was the feeling that they were suddenly not alone. There was a presence, somewhere yet everywhere, and nowhere in particular. It was just  _ there _ . The Master felt fear begin to bubble up in their chest alongside confusion, when a voice spoke up through the slowly increasing sound of TV static. 

They did not hear it with their ears, not even sure they were hearing it- it came like a thought, but in a voice not their own. Perhaps speaking wasn’t even the right word.

_Do not be afraid_, it ‘said’. Somehow, they knew it belonged to the presence they felt. It was unnaturally monotone

Oh, it’s a little late for that, the Master could not help but think. Despite themselves, however, they could feel their panic subside- and a soft, warm laugh echoed faintly in their mind.

They found themselves still unable to move, unable to open their mouth and form words, when the presence grew closer, the light growing tighter around them. They could not explain it, but the light had feeling. It had touch, still they could not touch it in return.

_ Let me help you.  _

There was a sharp pang in their chest- their heart must have finally given out. But- again, why were they still not dead, they wondered? They were sure dying wasn’t supposed to take this long. It was like the DMV, but physically painful instead of mentally.

_ Let me save you. _ They could practically feel the desperation creeping into the androgynous voice, even as the tone did not seem to change.

The light was dimming. Still, it tightened. It was constricting. Suffocating. They were suffocating. They couldn’t breathe. But… had they been breathing before? 

A thought occurred to them. The light was not dimming. 

The darkness was simply encroaching.

_ Please _ .

They still could not shift, could not speak, and once again their thoughts grew murkier and slow-  ** _help me_ ** , they managed to finally say to the light, with blue-tinged lips unmoving,  ** _I don’t want to die._ **

The static went quiet. There was a pause that seemed an eternity and then some, frozen in place like a fly in amber.

Then, it was as if a switch had been flipped, and they suddenly could  _ feel _ .

It started in their chest and spread outwards. A radiating warmth filled them, a gentle heat that brought forth in their exhausted mind images of cold evenings curled in front of the fireplace, dancing around midnight bonfires, of roasting treats over campfires. They were not sure they were even their own memories, with faces and figures blurred out except for their soft smiles, but they felt like friends. They felt like family. 

The murk in their mind melted and their pain dulled, replaced wholly by this new feeling that seemed to permeate down to the bone, into their very soul. They felt content. They felt safe. They felt protected.

They felt  _ loved _ . 

The heat quickly began to increase from there, rising and rising until it was if their veins were on fire- although they knew it hurt, they could not feel the pain. It felt as if the flames were engulfing them like a martyr at the stake- for, suddenly, that’s what they were, the ropes digging into their skinny wrists behind them as they gazed upon the crowd. Then, the fire was that of a dragon’s breath, hot upon their skin as it sought to roast them in their armor. Wait- armor? They were wearing armor of a brilliant copper, a white and red flag across their breast. The flames could not touch them, and their sword slashed its belly open- from it came a torrent of burning blood, flooding their mouth and nose as it drowned them, and their eyes gazed upon their own headless body sinking down into the crimson. Confused as they were, they were not scared. They were… they were quite awfully tired all of a sudden, weren’t they? 

They felt the last bits of consciousness slipping from their grasping fingers, and with their remaining strength they silently whispered a single question into the bright nothingness.  _ Who... no...  _ what  _ are you? _

  
_ My name is Michael _ , came the reply in their mind.  _ I am an angel of the Lord _ . 


	4. lazarus

They woke up in a bed. 

For a brief, fleeting moment as they opened their eyes, the Master of Chaldea was convinced it had perhaps been a dream- all the events of previous; the pain, the terror. They blinked sleepily, their blurred vision slowly sharpening with wakefulness as they turned their gaze from side to size. Ritsuka recognized Chaldea’s small medical ward and realized they were in one of its few hospital cots. Feeling some odd resistance as they attempted to shift, their eyes trailed upwards from their hand, where they saw a myriad of wires attached along with a thin tube disappearing into a prominent vein, up to the collection of monitors above their bed displaying various numbers and data about the human below. Across one monitor ran their heart-beat in a fluctuating green line, its steady beeping soft and reassuring.

They rubbed idly at their nose and found a small pronged tube; they couldn’t remember the name for the life of them- nasal something- but they knew it provided oxygen directly in motion with their breathing. At least it wasn’t a breathing tube shoved down their throat, so that meant that they had been able to breathe on their own while unconcious. They wondered how long they had been out. Or, more importantly, how they had even gotten here, back in the safety of Chaldea, considering that last they remembered they had fallen down a very deep crevasse into the depths of the earth. They winced at the memory- of falling for what seemed like forever, the painful bounces off outcroppings... but it’s never the fall that kills you. It’s the landing. They remembered where their fall had ended, the sickening thud and crunch as their bones shattered- those that hadn’t been broken already. 

Hold on.

Ritsuka glanced down at their limbs; first their two arms, then down to their legs, covered by a thin green blanket. Considering they looked no more bulkier than normal, and they could feel the blanket against them, it seemed all four of their limbs were without casts and therefore entirely and completely not broken- which was odd, as they distinctly (and  _ painfully _ ) remembered breaking them. They then attempted to test their movement. They wiggled their toes, then bent their legs, then shifted as the waist, up their body until, cracking their neck, they realized that there didn’t seem to be any limitations. There was no pain at all, no aches in their joints. Again, very odd, as their last memory had been aggressively knocking on Death’s door. Somehow, Ritsuka thought, they had managed to ding-dong-ditch and live another day.

They couldn’t help but smile at said thought, even if they did not understand it. They fully sat up in the medical bed, finding their back still moderately stiff- meaning they must have been out for at least a day. Oh, now they were thinking like a proper detective! They removed the blanket from their hospital gowned body as they moved to sit on the edge of the cot, quickly regretting the speed of their movements when a wave of dizziness hit them.

_ Woah, easy there. That felt… weird. _

Their gaze snapped up at the faintly familiar voice in their head, entirely forgetting about the moments after their fall up to the present moment- they had just assumed they were hallucinations or some figment of their dying mind. Maybe they did have injuries, just not external ones- were they still hallucinating? They had to be.

_ No, you’re not _ , the voice answered, and the Master couldn’t stop themselves- they instinctively screamed.

The voice attempted to do damage control, not that Ritsuka was really listening as they were awfully busy freaking out because there was a VOICE in their HEAD! They were startled and glanced back up as they heard the hydraulics of the door, watching a very startled looking Romani Archaman nearly trip as he barged in the doorway, with an equally concerned Mash and Da Vinci hot on his heels.

“Senpai!” The voice of their dear purple-haired kouhai squealed, as she rushed over to them in their bed and enveloped them in a tight hug. “You’re finally awake! Are you okay!?” 

“What was that scream? I hope you didn’t try to rip out your IVs- I know they do that in the movies, but it’s not realistic!” Roman piped up in his worried motherly tone, having beelined to their vital monitors that were now beeping angrily in tune with Master’s heart rate spike. 

Ritsuka lied easily. “It… it was nothing. I just didn’t know where I was for a moment.” 

Da Vinci spoke next, moving closer to stand by the bedside. “Ah, do not worry! You are safe in Chaldea now. You were out for three days... Bit of a close call though, hmm?” 

“Uh. Yeah.” They murmured as they patted Mash awkwardly on the back, still enveloped in her tight hug. Over her shoulder, Ritsuka saw a few Servants peek in the still-open doorway to the medical wing, and raised a hand halfway in greeting as they offered a small, if confused, smile. Mash then finally released them from her hold after a casual but meaningful tap on the back from Da Vinci, taking a seat on the bed next to their friend, but still keeping a hand held in theirs.

Ritsuka, still confused, managed to grab at least a loose hold on their thoughts. “But… I honestly don’t… remember. Um. What happened, exactly?” 

It was at this point that one of the Servants in the threshold piped up- C ú Chulainn. “During the fight, rifts in the ground started openin’ up- you must have fallen down one when we were preoccupied, yeah?” The Master nodded, and he leaned against the doorframe. “Well, we realized pretty quick somethin’ happened when we couldn’t hear you givin’ orders anymore.. But those monsters were putting up a good fight!” 

“Yes, they kept our attention for quite a while. Eventually, however, they turned back around and started ascending the volcano once more.” Artoria, now stepping fully into view, continued. “Then we were able to search for you, Master. We knew you were still alive, as we had not disappeared yet.”

“Robin found you in one of the, uh, cracks.” Mash explained. “You were unconscious, but somehow unhurt!”

C ú nodded. “You hadn’t fallen that far. Maybe a couple meters at most; you bumped your head to send you to snooze-town, but that was the only injury.”

Ritsuka’s brow furrowed- they were sure they had fallen a LOT farther than a handful of feet. 

“You were on a rather precarious ledge though, Master. Had you fallen even a little more to the side, you would have missed that shallow outcropping, and…” Artoria trailed off awkwardly, the words unsaid. They would have died. They  _ should  _ have died. “It was, frankly, a miracle that you survived.” She added after a moment with a reassuring- and relieved- smile, that was shared among the group gathered by the bedside.

“A miracle.” The Master echoed back, weakly.

  
_ Bingo _ , simply said the voice.


End file.
